Millennium World Story Style!
by iivxrebmunhael
Summary: The Millennium World manga in a story-type format.
1. Duel 1: The Millennium Treasure

**Chapter 1: The Millennium Treasure**

Three figures could be seen amongst the shapes of the pyramids. Two were wearing turbans, while the other wore a fedora. The first turbaned man murmured into the endless desert. "If you're going to turn back, now's the time. From here on is the territory of the dead. Once the sun sets, the shadows devour all…even the souls of the living." The man with the fedora simply smirked, his golden-blonde bangs and spiky hair bouncing a little. "Sounds like fun…" he muttered.

The three men were in Egypt: The Valley of the Kings, which was an enormous graveyard that held the pharaohs of Egypt's New Kingdom (1550-1070 B.C.) It is located in a deep valley west of the Nile River, near Luxor. The two turbaned men were simply guides to the spiky-haired man, Sugoroku, guiding him to the tomb he was seeking….

The second turbaned man spoke. "Over 60 tombs have been discovered in this valley. Most of them have been ransacked…. However, rumor says that in 3,000 years, that not one person has made it to the depths of THAT tomb…." "Not the grave robbers…not even the archaeologists…." The first man added. "At the beginning of this century one of the British royal archaeological team said this with his last breath: 'The Shadow Games…' Or so they say…" he continued. The spiky-haired man's smirk grew. _'The Shadow games…'_ he thought. The second guide spoke again. "Only the one who wins the games can get to the golden treasure hidden beyond…. Just so you know, we're not fools like you who'd throw our lives away for a game…. We'll lead you to the opening of the royal tomb…but after that, you put YOUR neck on the line to lead us to the treasure!"

Sugoroku lit a cigarette and popped it in his mouth. "Yeah…I know. I'm not interested in the treasure," he pointed out. The guides seemed surprised, but they didn't speak. "Let's wait for sunset…" Sugoroku continued. "Grave robbing is something best done at night."

Night fell. Sugoroku was leaning against his bag. "Is it time yet?" he asked the guides. "Yes…" the second one replied. Sugoroku stood up and adjusted his tie. The first guide was surprised. "That's a strange outfit for this job…" he pointed out. "A grave robber in a tuxedo? It doesn't even suit you…." Sugoroku adjusted his hat and smirked. "Show's what you know," he began. "Games are my life…. Cards…chess…. I've spent my life in gambling dens and casino cruises…. And I ALWAYS treat my opponents with respect." He closed his eyes and chuckled softly. "In fact, if I ever LOSE a game…then I'll exchange my tux for denim overalls and collect years instead of chips." The first guide's mouth curled up in a smirk. "Tonight's game could cost you more than the clothes on your back…just be careful not to join the mummies…" he warned. Then he began to start into the desert. "Come on. Let's go…" he said. Sugoroku stopped and thought about what was ahead. _'I've traveled the world,'_ he thought. _'Defeating every opponent at every game I played…. There's a legend in the game world of a hidden "game room" in Egypt's Valley of the Kings. Untold honor awaits the one who conquers the most dangerous tomb in all of history…. Here is a puzzle no one has solved!'_ he concluded, looking up. _'A challenge of honor!!'_

As the threesome approached an opening in one of the cliffs, the second guide spoke. "It's here!" he exclaimed. "Let's have you go first…Mister Mutou," the first guide uttered. Sugoroku sighed. "Here we go…" he breathed.

They entered a long corridor covered with hieroglyphs and depictions of the Ancient Egyptians. As the hallway slanted downward, their footsteps echoed against the stone walls. "This passage stretches thirty meters underground. There are no traps…yet," the first guide murmured ominously. Sugoroku didn't answer, and held his torch out in front of him as he continued forward. They came to a doorway. Sugoroku stopped before entering. "The entrance to the front room…. There's a warning carved in hieroglyphs on the door…" he muttered. "Beyond this point…rests the Great Pharaoh…. Beware, o you who would disturb him…. The gods shall punish you…. Your body will rot and your soul will be cursed to eternal darkness…" he translated. "So, you can interpret hieroglyphs?" the first man asked. "Well, it seems I can read these ones, anyway…" Sugoroku responded as they entered. His eyes widened as he walked through the doorway. _'What the--?!'_ he thought as he gazed around the room. Spikes protruded from the wall behind them, and bodies littered the floor and walls, covered in cobwebs. "Bodies of thieves…. Remains of the losers…" he voiced. As he looked closer, he found the floor was a narrow maze. One wrong step could send people into a seemingly bottomless hole. "This is the first hurdle…" Sugoroku exclaimed. "It's a game room!" The second guide yelped. "Aiee! This is where they die! It's not too late…let's turn back!" he urged. The first guide swiftly turned to him. "Shut up!" he commanded. "We've come this far! We can't leave now!" "But Brother…" the second guide protested. "Listen," the first guide's voice dropped to a whisper. "We're not in any danger! We just let HIM solve the puzzle, then WE take the treasure! Heh…. Don't be afraid…if I need to…. I'll use THIS…" he finished, pulling a gun out of his bag. The second guide gulped. "O—Okay…" he relented.

Sugoroku stared at the maze before him, thinking furiously. _'What kind of trap is it…?'_ he wondered. _'It'll be fatal to just walk ahead!'_ he concluded. "Hurry it up!" the first guide insisted, stepping forward. As he set his foot down, they heard a small "click" sound. "Huh?" the man asked, looking down to see he had stepped on a button. Suddenly, the door slammed shut, and spikes jutted from it. "Wh—WHAT?!" the second guide shouted. The wall then began to make a horrible grinding noise as it started moving forward. The second guide yelped again. "Yeek!" "Quick, get moving!" the first guide yelled. "UWAAA!" the second guide yelled. Sugoroku began to run forward into the maze. "There's no other choice!" he called over his shoulder. He stopped short, however, when one of the many Egyptian statues in the maze moved along the track on the floor. _'It's moving to block me!'_ Sugoroku thought, moving backwards a bit. Suddenly, the statue brought its arm down with a sword in it, and slashed downward. Sugoroku had to lean to the side to even narrowly avoid it. He began to walk backwards. "The statues are attacking with swords!" he shouted. _'If I don't do something soon…we'll all die!'_ he thought. The statue continued slashing in all directions. "I can't dodge past this many statues!" he cried. "We're running out of room!" the first guide exclaimed. "Hey!" he called, addressing Sugoroku. "Do something!" Sugoroku growled. _'Think, Mutou!'_ he told himself. 'Huh?!' he asked himself as he noticed the statue halt. _'The statue stopped for a moment!'_ he noted. He looked down at his feet. His left was in front of his right. _'It couldn't be….'_ His eyes widened. _'It IS!'_ he concluded as the statue remained still. _'In Ancient Egypt, the Pharaoh was a god!! And statues dedicated to the Pharaoh ALWAYS have the left foot forward,'_ he remembered. _'It symbolizes taking your heart from your left chest and presenting it to your god, the Pharaoh, as a token of absolute loyalty!! The pharaoh's tomb is a place of the gods…all people must show humility!! But ordinarily, people walk without thinking! Those who forget to respect the pharaoh are punished with death!!'_ "Listen to me!" Sugoroku called over his shoulder to the guides. "Keep your left leg in front as you move! If you put your right leg in front, the statues will attack you!" _'Left leg!!'_ the first guide thought to himself as he began moving. "B—But I don't walk like that!!" the second guide protested. "Just do it!!" Sugoroku interrupted. _'This game is designed to test the wisdom and humility of intruders!'_ he thought to himself. _'This statue over the next door shows the pharaoh with the body of Horus, the falcon god…the "Opener of the Way"!'_ Once he was on the other side of the maze, he looked back at the two Egyptian guides. "Watch your step!" he warned. The second guide hesitated, looking at the statues. "Eep! I can't…." Then, his fear overwhelmed him, and he began to run. However, as soon as he set his right foot forward, the statues on either side of him brought down their swords and stabbed him through his chest. "AAGGHH!" he yelled. "MUSHARA!" the first guide yelled. Mushara did not stir, but slumped, blood coming forth from his mouth.

Once the remaining guide crossed the maze, he dropped to his knees, mourning his brother. Then quickly he jumped up, grabbed Sugoroku's tie, and pointed his gun at his face. "It's your fault my little brother died!" he shouted. Even with the gun practically touching his nose, Sugoroku's gaze never wavered. "Give it up. That's the rules of the shadow games…" he explained. "Keep moving!" the guide commanded, pointing the gun threateningly. They came to another doorway. "This is the second room…" Sugoroku breathed while the guide gulped. He put his hand on some carvings near the entryway. "Another epitaph…" he muttered. "The Ka sealed in the stone slabs shall judge you…the cowardly will be eaten by demons…the courageous will be shown the way…" he read. He looked at a narrow bridge that crossed a bottomless chasm. "And there's the stone slabs on the floor…" he noted. The two men noticed a glint of light at the other end of the bridge. "Hmm?" the guide wondered. "Look! A light in the tomb!" he exclaimed. "It's the shine of gold! The treasure's over there!" He pointed his gun at Sugoroku again. "Now go! Show me where it's safe to step!" Sugoroku began to cross the bridge, stepping on the stone tablets. "Look…just don't let your guard down…" he threw over his shoulder. "Uh huh…" the guide murmured while he thought, _'Heed your own words….'_

Sugoroku drew nearer to the end of the bridge. _'A few more steps…'_ he thought. _'A few more steps and I'll conquer the Shadow Games!' _"Heh…" the guide smirked. _'Looks like he's going to get across safely…. There's nothing wrong with this bridge…It's safe…. Now that I know that…I don't need…YOU!'_ he thought, and pulled the trigger. The bullet nearly missed, but buried itself in the top of Sugoroku's left shoulder. His eyes widened and he gritted his teeth in pain as he began to topple off the narrow bridge. _'You solved the Shadow Games. Now you can die in peace…'_ the guide thought, smirking. However, Sugoroku managed to grab the edge of the bridge with his right hand. As the guide walked past him, he murmured, "See you in Hell…." The guide then looked towards the light again. "Heh heh…the gold!" he muttered to himself. Sugoroku closed his eyes as his arm began to shake under the strain of his weight. Suddenly, shadows began emanating from the stone slabs on the bridge. "Hm…? Wh—What…? What's going on?!" the guide cried as a large clawed hand protruded from the slab and grabbed him. "Aiee!" he yelped. The monster's head then came forth from the slab, revealing a huge mouth with many teeth. It roared at the guide. "NO…!" the guide yelled as the monster brought him up toward its great maw. "AAGGHH!" he screamed as the monster swallowed him.

Meanwhile, Sugoroku was struggling to keep awake. _'I made it so far…'_ he thought. He looked up with half-open eyes. _'Is this the end…?'_ he wondered. His eyes widened slightly when he saw a figure standing over him. It was kind of blurry, but Sugoroku could make out a long billowing cape and large spiky hair. Then, the figure knelt, holding its hand out to Sugoroku. "I've been waiting…" he said. "…Siamun…." Then Sugoroku allowed the darkness to overcome him.

Sugoroku woke, lying sprawled across the bridge. _'Who in the world…'_ he wondered as he stood up, putting a hand on his injured shoulder. He then walked towards a pedestal, and picked up an intricate box, golden and covered in Egyptian hieroglyphs. _'The Millennium Puzzle…'_ the game master thought triumphantly.

As the old man's flashback ended, Sugoroku thought, _'That was how I obtained the Millennium Puzzle…and how Yuugi's troubled destiny began. …No…'_ he contradicted himself. '

**A/N: Well, that was kinda fun! I really wanna do this for all of the series, but I'm pretty busy, so I'll try and update ASAP :D Hope you liked!**


	2. Duel 2: A Sleepless Night

**Chapter 2: A Sleepless Night**

Yuugi Mutou sat at the desk in his room, face resting in his hand, staring at the beautiful golden box the Millennium Puzzle was once in. _'The God Cards are in this box,'_ he thought. _'The three God Cards that the Other Me fought hard to win in Battle City…. They're a piece of the puzzle in the search for his memories….'_ Yuugi picked up the box. _'Tomorrow, I'm going to the museum with my friends. Apparently there's this stone slab on display from an Ancient Egyptian temple. I haven't seen it but…Anzu said there's an image of the pharaoh carved into it that looks like the Other Me. Apparently that stone slab means a lot to the Other Me's lost memories…. The three God Cards…the Mysterious Slab….'_ Yuugi looked up, a determined look in his eyes. _'I promise you, my Other Self…you'll find your memories soon!'_

Sugoroku peeked into Yuugi's room. "Oho! Are you still up? It's one o'clock in the morning!" he asked as he walked towards Yuugi. "I just couldn't get to sleep!" Yuugi explained. "Um…since you're awake, Yuugi…could you show them to me one more time?" Sugoroku asked. "I can't get to sleep without seeing them!" "Again?! You've come to see them ten times already!!" Yuugi stated. "Humor your old grandpa!" Sugoroku pleaded. "Oh, all right!" Yuugi relented. Sugoroku opened the box and took out the three Egyptian God cards, and suddenly, he went ecstatic. "WHOO HOO! THE GOD CARDS! I WANT THEM! MY PRECIOUS!" he raved. "You can't have them!" Yuugi shouted. "It stirs my blood as a game collector!" Sugoroku protested. "If you won't sell them, just let me display them in the store! PLEASE!" "I SAID NO!!" Yuugi yelled. "Okay…" Sugoroku relented, backing off. "You don't know how hard it was, Grandpa…" Yuugi reasoned. "You don't know the life or death duels the Other Me had to go through in Battle City to win the God Cards!!" "Hm? The Other You…?" Sugoroku asked, confused. "Urk! Did I say 'the Other Me'? I meant…uh… 'it bothered me'!" _'Uh-oh…Grandpa hasn't met the other me…!'_ Yuugi thought. Sugoroku's look became serious. "Yuugi…. You're talking about the Pharaoh's soul, aren't you?" he asked. "WHAT!? Grandpa, how did you…?!" Yuugi stammered, shocked. _'I thought so…. The Pharaoh's soul has taken residence in Yuugi, the one who solved the Millennium Puzzle…'_ Sugoroku thought. _'Beyond the maze in that tomb, there may be another realm where no one has set foot. The trials beyond that maze are for the one who solves the Millennium Puzzle….'_ Sugoroku placed a hand on Yuugi's shoulder. "Yuugi…all I know is…the one who solves the Millennium Puzzle inherits the will of the Pharaoh. And that person will be endlessly tested…" he said very seriously. "Yuugi…that is the fate of the chosen one." 'Grandpa…' Yuugi thought. _'No matter what, you mustn't give up!'_ Sugoroku thought. Yuugi smiled, determination blazing in his eyes. "I know!" he exclaimed. Sugoroku chuckled, ruffling Yuugi's hair. "Well, time for bed!" he said as he walked out of Yuugi's room. "Good night, Yuugi." Yuugi had a small smile on his face. "Good night…?"

That night, Yuugi lay in his bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about what his grandpa had said to him. "That is the fate of the chosen one…" he had said. _'Why did Grandpa say that…?'_ Yuugi asked himself. Then, he thought about something Bakura had said to him. _'Bakura said something to me before.…'_ "To awaken the Pharaoh's memories is the duty of the one chosen by the Puzzle…" he had uttered. _'Memories…'_ Yuugi mused. _'Anyway, we'll find out something at the museum tomorrow….'_ He closed his eyes. _'But now I feel so restless it almost hurts….'_ Suddenly, Yuugi saw his Other Self sitting at his desk, looking out the window. "Other Me…" Yuugi murmured. Yami Yuugi looked surprised. "I'm sorry…. Did I wake you?" he asked. "No…I couldn't sleep either…" Yuugi explained. "After all, tomorrow we might get your memories back! You've been wanting them for so long! I'm too excited to sleep!" he exclaimed. Yami Yuugi smiled slightly. He looked back out the window. "Partner…" he began. "I know that who I really am…is the soul of the Pharaoh sealed in the Millennium Puzzle. I met you when you became my partner…my partner in the search for my memories. Then I met Jonouchi and Anzu…Honda…and lots of other friends…." "Yup," Yuugi agreed. "Now, I have new memories…the memories of being with my friends. No matter what happens, those memories will always be there." _'No matter…what…'_ Yuugi repeated in his mind. "To me, the memories of my friends are an eternal treasure," Yami Yuugi continued. _'An eternal treasure…. But…if what's ahead is…eternal….'_ Yuugi interrupted his own thoughts, saying, "Other Me…this is just like when I put the Millennium Puzzle together…. This time it's your turn to put the pieces of your memory back together!" _'Partner…'_ Yami Yuugi thought, slightly startled. "As long as you need me…I'll always be your partner!" Yuugi vowed, smiling. Yami no Yuugi smiled as well. _'Yes!!'_

Yuugi had finally fallen asleep, and did not notice the burglar break the window next to his desk. The thief looked toward his sleeping form as he reached towards the golden box, in which was the Egyptian God cards. Yuugi's eyes began to flutter open. Just as the thief grabbed the box, Yuugi flipped over and asked, "Who's there?!" The thief smirked as he took the box and hopped off the roof of the Game Shop. _'The God Cards!!'_ Yuugi thought, horrified. "WAIT!" he called, but to no avail. He threw on his school coat and ran out the front door, growling. _'The Other Me NEEDS those cards!'_ he thought. _'Partner! Let me do it!'_ Yami Yuugi suggested. "No!" Yuugi exclaimed out loud. _'It was MY duty to protect those cards!'_ "STOP, THIEF!" he yelled, increasing his speed. After a few moments, however, Yuugi lost track of the thief. "Where did he go…?" he wondered aloud. Suddenly, he heard a scream coming from a nearby alley. _'That yell…!!'_ Yuugi thought as he ran towards the noise. He stopped in his tracks upon seeing the thief in a heap on the ground and a figure standing over him. The figure then bent down and picked up the golden box. "You…" Yuugi murmured, recognizing the shadowed person. Bakura then whipped around, gesturing to the box. "If we lost these cards, we'd never find the Pharaoh's memories!" he practically yelled. "Well, Yuugi? It's your job to keep them safe!" he exclaimed. _'Bakura!'_ Yuugi thought, shocked. "Feh…. You're so careless I can't leave you alone for an instant!" Bakura reprimanded. He then tossed the box to Yuugi. "Here! Make sure they're all there!" he barked. Yuugi obliged, opening the box. _'It's okay! The cards are alright!'_ he observed. "Every card collector on Earth knows that you won the God Cards at Battle City!" Bakura said seriously. "They're the rarest cards that Pegasus left to this world. You should have known thieves would come after them." "Bakura…" Yuugi began tentatively. "Thanks for helping me…you got my cards back…." Bakura grunted in response. "Hmph." "Thank you…" Yuugi repeated. "But…you're wearing that _thing…_" he pointed out. Bakura held the cord from which his Millennium Ring was hanging. "Heh…. Do you mean this?" he asked, gesturing to it. "Yuugi…the Millennium Ring belongs to me," he exclaimed. "Although I'm sure my host's little theft on the battle ship caused a problem for you," he sneered. "Don't worry…I know that sooner or later you'll need all seven of the Millennium Items. When that time comes, and no sooner, I'll hand over the Millennium Ring." Bakura began digging in his right pocket. "In return for that…." He pulled out a golden sphere with the Eye of Horus on it and showed it to Yuugi. "I'll give you this…." Yuugi's eyes widened. _'That's…the Millennium Eye!!'_ he thought. "This is my way of swearing loyalty!!" Bakura declared. "Do you see, Yuugi? I'll help you solve the puzzle of the Pharaoh's memories!! You can count on me!!"

* * *

Sorry for so long on the update. Busy busy busy with school and stuff. XD Also, this chapter was kinda long. I've already started work on Chapter 3, so it should be up possibly within the week.


	3. Duel 3: The Truth of the Artifact!

**Chapter 3: The Truth of the Artifact**

Bakura held out the Millennium Eye in his hand.

"Take it, Yuugi!" he urged. "Let this be a symbol of my loyalty!"

'_Pegasus's Millennium Eye!'_ Yuugi thought. _'No one knows what happened to Pegasus after the Duelist Kingdom tournament…. H—How did Bakura get the Millennium Eye…?'_ he wondered.

"Yuugi…when you solved the Millennium Puzzle, you released the Pharaoh's soul into this world! In that moment, it became your duty as the chosen one to reawaken the Pharaoh's memories!" Bakura explained. "To do that, you need all the Millennium Items. This eye is one of those…. I'm going to give it to you so you can use it for its destined purpose! When you collect all of the other six Millennium Items…then I'll give you the last one…the Millennium Ring. You have my word!" he promised.

'_How much does Bakura know about the Millennium Items?'_ Yuugi wondered. _'Pegasus talked about seeing the Tablet of the Pharaoh's Memories in an underground temple in Egypt…. He said it had holes in it that matched the Millennium Items…'_ he mused.

"Bakura, do you know about the Tablet of Memories? Do you know what happens when you fit all the Millennium Items into it?" Yuugi asked.

"The Tablet in the village of Kul Elna, you mean?" Bakura inquired. "That stone tablet is an artifact that connects this world to the world beyond," he explained.

'_The world beyond…!!'_ Yuugi thought.

"When the seven Millennium Items are placed in the stone slab…the door to the Afterlife will open," Bakura went on to say.

"The door to the Afterlife…?" Yuugi repeated.

"That's right," Bakura confirmed. "And you know what THAT means…don't you, Yuugi?" he asked.

'_What you DON'T need to know is what's on the other side of that door…the shadow power that I'm after…. H-ha ha.…'_

Yuugi put a hand on his Millennium Puzzle. "I kind of know…" he began. "It's my duty to send the Other Me…no…the Pharaoh's soul sealed in the Millennium Puzzle…to the Afterlife!!"

"Bingo!!" Bakura exclaimed. "That's what you get for solving the Puzzle!! Great power means great responsibility, right?" he asked sardonically. "In any case…" he continued. "I'll help you out however I can! I promise, Yuugi! Here! Here's the Eye! Take it!" he exclaimed as he tossed the Millennium Eye to Yuugi.

"Ah…!" Yuugi emitted in surprise. Then, "Whoops…" as he almost dropped the Eye. He looked back at Bakura. _'…Why is he being so friendly? Bakura used to be after the Millennium Items…he even tried to kill me…. I can't trust him that easily!'_ Yuugi concluded.

"What?" Bakura asked. "You look suspicious."

"Tell me why you want to help me!" Yuugi ordered.

There was silence for a moment before Bakura spoke. "I too…am a soul in a Millennium Item. I was sealed in the Millennium Ring for three thousand years. I can't do anything without a host body…. So, Yuugi…" Bakura said, tearing his gaze from his Millennium Ring and instead bringing it to Yuugi. "I want to go to the Afterlife, too! When the Pharaoh goes there, so will I!" he declared.

There was more silence. _'Was that the right answer…?_' Bakura wondered, trying to read Yuugi's expression. _'The seven Millennium Items aren't enough to open the door…there's another key that I need! It's like Marik said…the three God Cards that Yuugi won in Battle City…have the power to restore the Pharaoh's memories. The key to what I want is hidden in the Pharaoh's memories!! I'll let Yuugi do the work and then steal the key!'_ he concluded.

Meanwhile, Yuugi was having some thoughts of his own. _'I don't know what Bakura is up to…but I know it's my duty to collect all of the Millennium Items!'_ He gripped the Millennium Eye tighter. _'I have four of them now…' _he thought. _'The Millennium Puzzle…the Millennium Tauk, from Ishizu's necklace…the Millennium Rod, from Marik…and Pegasus's Millennium Eye…. The three left are…Bakura's Millennium Ring…and Shaadi's Items…the Millennium Key and the Millennium Scales!'_

Bakura interrupted Yuugi's thoughts, saying, "Yuugi…after school today, you're going to the museum with your friends, right? My host is looking forward to it…. The three God Cards and the mystery of the Pharaoh's memories…soon you'll find another piece to the puzzle." Bakura turned away.

"I'll be watching from the shadows…we'll meet again…" he said mysteriously as he walked away.

_**Soon the dawn came…. And with it, our most incredible adventure of all.**_

~DOMINO HIGH SCHOOL~

"'Sup, Yuugi?" A blonde, messy-haired teen greeted Yuugi, smiling as he walked into the classroom.

"Oh…good morning, Jonouchi…" Yuugi replied tiredly.

Jonouchi grinned. "What's goin' on?! You look pretty tired! Did you sleep?" he asked.

"There was a lot going on last night…" Yuugi said evasively, looking upwards.

"What do you mean, 'a lot'?" Jonouchi wondered. Then realization, came over his face and he winked at Yuugi. "OH! 'A lot'! I get it!" he said knowingly. He put his hand over the side of his mouth and leaned closer to Yuugi. "Uh…speaking of _that_…."

His voice dropped to a whisper.

"Could you gimme back that video I lent you? I finally got my VCR fixed, so…."

"Huh…video…?" Yuugi asked, uncomprehending.

Jonouchi looked slightly embarrased. "Y'know…the one with the...—"

"OH! Th—THAT video!" Yuugi blushed. "Grandpa found that one and he…--"

Suddenly, the boys were interrupted by a brunette girl who walked in and greeted them loudly and cheerfully, making them jump. "MORNING!"

"Yerk!" Jonouchi yelped in surprise.

The girl smirked. "And just what were _you_ talking about, hmm…?" she asked shrewdly.

"G—Good morning, Anzu…" Yuugi said guiltily.

"We weren't saying nothing!" Jonouchi said defensively.

Ryou and Honda then walked into the classroom. "Yo!" Honda greeted, carrying his extending folder for class under one arm.

"Good morning," Ryou said with a weary smile. He had lines under his eyes, mirroring Yuugi's, and seemed to be struggling to keep his eyes open.

'_Bakura…!'_ Yuugi thought as he replied, "Morning…."

Jonouchi leaned closer to Ryou. "What's up, Bakura?" he asked. "Are those lines under your eyes? You look tired!" he observed.

Ryou rubbed his right eye. "Yeah…I couldn't drag myself out of bed this morning…" he explained.

Anzu then turned back to Yuugi. "Say, Yuugi…" she began. "Did you bring the cards?"

"Yup!" Yuugi affirmed. To prove it, he took out the golden box and put it on the desk in front of him, making a small "clink" sound as he set it down. The others looked at the box as it sat on the desk, somewhat ominously. Yuugi then took out the three God Cards he had won in Battle City. Honda took them from him.

"The God Cards, huh?" he mused. "What can these do for you memories that they haven't done already?" he asked almost skeptically.

"Well, I hardly know myself…" Yuugi admitted.

"C'mon! That's why we're going to the museum, right?" Jonouchi asked Honda like he was stupid.

"So what's over there that's so important? They got an exhibit on trading cards now?" Honda asked sarcastically.

"How should I know?!" Jonouchi retorted angrily.

Anzu, however, knew exactly why they were going to the museum. _'In the museum is the stone slab with a picture of Yuugi as an Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh…' _she thought. '_I guess I'm the only one here who's seen it…. But if the other Yuugi is really the soul of a Pharaoh that was trapped in the Millennium Puzzle…then maybe he has a place to go back to, like Ishizu said.' _

"Yuugi…" Anzu murmured. "Hm?" Yuugi asked, turning to her. "If…the other Yuugi…gets all his lost memories as Pharaoh back…he wouldn't forget about all of us, would he…?" Anzu asked sadly.

"Anzu…" Yuugi began, not sure how to answer. But then, he winked at her, and his Millennium Puzzle glowed brightly for a moment.

Suddenly, Yami Yuugi was sitting at Yuugi's desk.

He put on hand in his pocket. "Tch…'course I wouldn't forget you!" he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Anzu's heart skipped a beat. _'It's him!' _she thought, blushing slightly.

Jonouchi threw his arm over Honda's shoulders, who looked startled. "You said it! Of course not!" he agreed, grinning. "We're friends forever!"

"Th—that's right!" Anzu concurred. Yami Yuugi smiled.

"All righty then! Let's head for the museum!" Jonouchi exclaimed excitedly.

"You _moron_! It's not even first period yet!" Honda chided.

"Cool it, Jonouchi…we'll go AFTER school!" Anzu reproached.

~DOMINO CITY MUSEUM~

The gang stood in front of the museum.

"About time we went here…" Jonouchi declared.

'_The secret to my memories is here…' _Yami Yuugi thought as he looked up the steps that led to the museum's entrance.

As they climbed the stairway, they noticed a fairly large man standing at the top, intercepting them. He wore a turban on his head and had odd-looking locks down the front of his shirt.

"Master Yuugi Mutou, I presume?" he asked. "I have been awaiting your arrival," he said, smiling.

"What th--!? Who the heck are YOU?" Jonouchi demanded rudely.

"I am called…Bobasa!" he claimed. He opened the front of his shirt, and on his chest there were indentations that fit each of the Millennium Items. However, at the moment, there were only two: The Millennium Key and the Millennium Scales. "It is my duty to protect Master Yuugi's Millennium Items…!" Bobasa exclaimed. "By the order of Master Shaadi of the Clan of Tomb Guardians, I have come to follow you!" he announced.

'_Who is this man…?!!_' Yami Yuugi wondered in bewilderment.

* * *

_First, I'd like to thank all the people who have reviewed. Which means:_

**_Thank you Velgamidragon_**

**_Thank you AVAgrl_**

**_Thank you NightmareTroubador_**

_I really REALLY appreciate it!_

_Anyways, this time I tried a different format, due to the suggestion of NightmareTroubador. I hope it worked better. But, you tell me! Anyway, thanks again! Chapter four isn't too terribly long, so I should get it up within a reasonable amount of time. Until then!_


	4. Duel 4: Voyage into Memories

**Chapter 4: Voyage into Memories**

The large man stood on the museum steps, holding the front of his shirt open, showing the gang the indentations in his flesh made to fit the Millennium Items.

"I am called…Bobasa!" he exclaimed. "It is my duty to protect Master Yuugi's Millennium Items!"

The other six assembled looked at Bobasa with a varying mixture of disgust and surprise on their faces. "Who's this fat dude!?" Jonouchi demanded rudely.

"Ho ho ho! I am so very pleased to meet you!" Bobasa chortled, ignoring Jonouchi's outburst.

'_This man calling himself Bobasa…has holes for the Millennium Items in his chest…!!'_ Yami Yuugi observed. He then noticed the two Millennium Items already in their proper place. _'He has the Millennium Key and the Millennium Scales!'_ he thought, eyes widening. _'Why does he have Shaadi's Items…?!'_ Yami Yuugi wondered.

Jonouchi turned his head towards Yami Yuugi. "Be careful, Yuugi!" he warned. "He might be another enemy trying to get the Millennium Items!!" Bobasa became nervous. "Oh, no, no!" he pleaded, shaking his hands. "I am not an enemy! Please believe me!"

Jonouchi pointed at Bobasa accusingly. "Well, fat chance! Those Millennium Items belong to Shaadi! He put our lives in danger with his Shadow Games!" he declared. "How do we know you're not gonna do the same thing?"

"To be sure, I come from the Clan of Tomb Guardians. And I have served Master Shaadi for many years! But I mean you no harm! I have come to _protect _Master Yuugi…by Master Shaadi's orders," Bobasa explained.

"Shaadi asked you…to _protect _me?" Yami Yuugi asked somewhat skeptically.

"Master Shaadi only wished to discern if you were the true Pharaoh for whom we have waited for 3,000 years! That is why he tested you with the Shadow Games. It is the sacred duty of our bloodline to watch over the Pharaoh's soul and the Millennium Items," Bobasa pointed out. "Oh yeah? Marik was from your clan and he tried to KILL us!" Jonouchi countered.

"Long ago, the clan was united…but we were split apat by rivalries over the items we sought to protect. But the clan itself is not your enemy! I come to Master Yuugi by will of the Millennium Key!" Bobasa claimed. Yami Yuugi did not speak. "I understand if you cannot trust me now…it is too soon!" Bobasa said with a small smile. "However, I will accompany you on your journey! After time…you will come to trust me! Then you will be willing to leave the Millennium Items in my care!" he announced, gesturing to his open shirt. "I am a human safe! I would give my life to protect them!"

Yami Yuugi smirked and held the chain of his Millennium Puzzle, causing it to clank softly. "Even if I did believe you, I can't let you have this!" he said, gesturing to his Puzzle.

"I know what you feel. Until the time is right, I will keep at least these two Millennium Items! A safe of flesh is most secure!" Bobasa proclaimed. He then took out a key from his pocket and closed the front of his shirt, locking the locks that were positioned as though they were buttons. "I lock my clothes like this!" he said, the locks making a small "click" noise. He then popped the key into his mouth. "And swallow the key…like this!" He gulped loudly.

Jonouchi's expression was one of revulsion. "Gross! He actually did it!" he exclaimed disbelievingly.

Bobasa's face contorted, and he grunted. "Ungh!" Suddenly, he stuck out his tongue, and behold! There was the key, sitting upon it. "I can bring it back!" he said. "The safest place is in the stomach!"

"Who IS this dude?!" Honda asked, eyes wide. "Some kind of circus freak?!" Jonouchi added.

Bobasa swallowed the key again and cleared his throat. "Ahem!" Then, his face suddenly became serious and he went down on one knee. "Now to the point. Master Yuugi…no…Soul of the Pharaoh…" he corrected himself. "By the will of the God Cards, you have come to this museum…. You will now trabel to the World of Memory…and face your destiny once more…!" he announced dramatically.

'_The World of Memory!!' _Yami Yuugi thought, eyes widening slightly.

"No matter how painful the experiences that await you there, you must not look away!" Bobasa then turned his gaze towards the rest of the gang. "And…the same goes for you…."

"Wait just a minute, Fatty!" Jonouchi interrupted. "What're you tryin' to say?"

"Bobasa…" Yami Yuugi interjected. "How much do you know…about my memories…and the secret of the Millennium Items?" he inquired.

Bobasa stood and turned towards the museum. "The answers to all puzzles are in the World of Memory…YOU must see with your own eyes…" he answered.

The Spirit of the Millennium Ring mulled over Bobasa's words. _'The World of Memory…?'_ "Now let us go. To the museum!" Bobasa exclaimed.

The gang walked through the Egyptian exhibit of the Domino City Museum, Bobasa leading the way.

"Yuugi…" Anzu murmured. Yami Yuugi looked over his shoulder. "Hm? What is it, Anzu?"

Anzu smiled and blushed nervously. "Oh…uh…it's nothing! I was just remembering the last time we went here together!" she said quickly. "I see…" Yami Yuugi replied, slightly raising one eyebrow and turning back around.

Anzu's smile vanished. _'I called him "Yuugi" like always, but…even though he's in Yuugi's body, he's a completely different person…he's not just some other part of Yuugi…. If he really is a Pharaoh from 3,000 years ago…then he must have a name from that time…. He lost his name…along with his memories….'_

The gang passed the souvenir shop.

'_The gift shop…'_ Anzu observed. Then she had an idea. '_I know…! It's an Ancient Egyptian exhibit! They have to have those….'_ She ran into the shop. "I'll be right back!" she called over her shoulder.

"Leave the souvenirs till LATER!" Honda reprimanded.

Anzu pointed to one of the items in the glass case near the front. "There! That one! Excuse me, could I get one of these?" she asked the clerk. Anzu then ran out of the store to where everyone was waiting for her. "Sorry 'bout that!" she apologized. She walked up to Yami Yuugi. "Yuugi…" she said softly. Yami Yuugi turned to her.

Anzu opened her hand and showed Yami Yuugi what was inside: a sliver chain with a shiny silver oval attached to it. Yami Yuugi picked it up and held it in front of his eyes. "What's this…?" he asked curiously.

"It's a cartouche pendant. It's like a nameplate. The Ancient Pharaohs always had their names written on cartouches!" she explained. "There's no name on this one…" Yami Yuugi observed.

"I want you to carve your _real_ name on there, Yuugi." Anzu said simply, smiling.

Yami Yuugi tore his eyes from the pendant and turned his gaze to Anzu. _'My…real name…?!' _he thought, slightly taken aback. Anzu winked. "That way, when you get your memories and your real name back, you'll never forget it again."

Yami Yuugi looked back at the pendant thoughtfully. _'The engravings of the Pharaoh's name on that stone slab were scratched out…Anzu realized that I'd forgotten my name.…_'

Meanwhile, Anzu had thoughts of her own_. 'I want it for myself, too…. I want to know your real name….'_

Yami Yuugi unclasped the necklace and fastened it around his neck. "Thank you, Anzu! I'll treasure it always!!" he declared, smiling. "Okay!" Anzu answered happily.

The gang continued on into a back room of the museum, and ended up in front of the stone slab. Anzu and Yami Yuugi were the only ones who had seen it, so they were the only ones without surprised looks on their faces.

'_So this is the stone slab!!'_ Jonouchi thought. The gang looked over the giant stone, seeing the images of the Pharaoh and his Priest in a battle, the Pharaoh fighting with the Dark Magician and the Priest with the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. _'That really does look just like Yuugi! …And the dude drawn next to him…is Kaiba?!'_ Jonouchi observed.

'_The time has come!'_ Yami Yuugi thought. _'The brand on Marik's back showed me what to do…. I have to present the three God Cards to the Tablet of Memory….'_ He took out the God Cards from their golden box.

'_And then what will happen?'_

"Yuugi…" Jonouchi muttered. Yami Yuugi looked back at the Tablet.

'_The answer is here!!'_

He turned the cards over in his hand so they were facing the slab, and raised them before the stone. Suddenly, the Millennium Puzzle engraved on the Tablet glowed brightly, blinding everyone, and Yami Yuugi suddenly felt like he was falling…falling into darkness. And while he reached upwards in search of something to stop his fall, he thought, _'The…World of my Memories…!'_ And he fell unconscious upon a tall, golden throne, surrounded by six people, each wielding a Millennium Item, three on either side.

* * *

_Well, that came out earlier than I expected it to. It wasn't too long. However, Chapter 5 might take a while due to the fact that there are so many descriptions, and I'm really bad at that kind of stuff _ But I'll try and get it out ASAP! _

_Again, I'd like to thank my reviewers:_

**_Thank you Velgamidragon!_**

**_Thank you NightmareTroubador!_**

**_Thank you AVAgrl!_**

_I really appreciate the feedback!_

_Until later!_


	5. Duel 5: The Six Chosen Priests

**Chapter 5: The Six Chosen Priests**

The blinding light radiated from the Millennium Puzzle engraved on the stone slab, causing those assembled to cover their eyes. The real Millennium Puzzle began to glow as well, and Yami Yuugi's soul was pulled out of Yuugi's body and into the stone slab.

"Urk…!!" Jonouchi grunted.

'_My other self…!' _Yuugi thought, eyes wide. Yami Yuugi began falling…falling through a blinding combination of light and darkness.

Finally, the light in the museum dimmed. Yuugi was on his knees while Ryou, Bobasa, Anzu, Honda, and Jonouchi were all rubbing their eyes. "Urgh…" Tristan growled as he stood upright.

"For a moment there was this bright light…" Jonouchi observed. "What in the world is goin' on?"

The gang then noticed Yuugi on the ground. They ran over to him as Anzu called, "YUUGI!!" They knelt next to him, and Jonouchi asked, "Hey Yuugi! Are you okay?"

Yuugi straightened and held his Millennium Puzzle, not speaking for a moment. "The Other Me…" he murmured softly in a wavering voice, tears gathering in his eyes. "He's GONE…."

"WHAT?!" Jonouchi exclaimed. "The Other Yuugi is GONE?!" Honda repeated.

"He's not in the Puzzle…or in my heart…I don't know _where_ he is!" Yuugi continued. Anzu looked horrified. _'He's GONE?!' _the Spirit of the Millennium Ring questioned.

"…No way…" Jonouchi said disbelievingly. Yuugi brought the Millennium Puzzle to his forehead and suppressed a sob. "Uhh…" _'Where did you go? Other Me, where are you?' _

"The Pharaoh has gone to the world of his memory…" Bobasa explained solemnly. _'The World of Memory…!'_ Yuugi thought, looking up. Bobasa nodded. "The Pharaoh must face his fate again…in his search for the truth…he must travel into the maze of long-lost memories…."

Yami Yuugi was falling still. He saw a village and a large palace beneath him. Then suddenly, he was on a tall throne surrounded by six guardians. He appeared to be unconscious, his head bowed and eyes closed. A rather short man walked to the Pharaoh's side, wearing a tall hat with the Eye of Wdjat on it and a cloth covering his face under his eyes. "Pharaoh…. Pharaoh…!!" he whispered, trying to awaken him.

Yami Yuugi opened his eyes as the stout man cleared his throat. The Pharaoh then sat bolt upright, looking around. "…! Where am I…?" he wondered.

"Wh—what are you saying?! Great Pharaoh…in all times, you must act with dignity as befits the living representation of the gods! To fall asleep on the throne…! Oh, the shame of it…!" the man reprimanded.

The Pharaoh looked at the man. "GRANDPA!!" he exclaimed, shocked.

"Gr…?!" the man began to repeat, dumbfounded. He then calmed down. "It is I, your vizier, Siamun Muran. 'Grandpa'?! I have never been called by any other name!" the man, Siamun, explained.

The Pharaoh had a slightly dumbstruck expression on his face. _'Siamun…?!'_ He turned his gaze towards the six people standing in front of his throne. _'What's going on…?_' he wondered. He then looked down at himself and for the first time noticed his clothing. He wore a golden crown on his forehead with the Eye of Wdjat upon it. A midnight blue cape was around his neck, and from underneath came the Millennium Puzzle which rested on the middle of his torso. He wore a slightly off-white tunic that went down to his knees. Golden bands encircled his waist, and from underneath came a blue banner outlined in white. He also had golden bands around his upper arms, wrists, and calves. _'Why am I dressed like this…?!' _he thought, puzzled. He then thought about his new "title". _'Pharaoh…?!' _

An Egyptian soldier entered the throne room and knelt before the throne. "O Great Pharaoh… it is time," he announced. "Huh…?!" the Pharaoh asked. He then turned to Siamun. "Hey, Gr…I mean…Siamun…what's going ON here?"

"WHAT?! What do you mean?" Siamun demanded. The Pharaoh looked at the six people in front of him. "Who in the world are these guys…?" he inquired. Siamun looked positively horrified. There were three people on his left, and three on his right. "They all have Millennium Items!" the Pharaoh observed.

On his right, there were three men. The first wore a simple beige robe with his hood up. He seemed an older man, for he had a white beard and mustache, wielding the Millennium Eye in his left socket.

The second had the Millennium Scales. He wore a large golden neckpiece and had straight black hair above his shoulders with a golden ring above his forehead. He wore a floor-length kilt and a sash tucked into his belt that went across his left shoulder.

The third had on a headdress with a golden piece around it. On his forehead was a circle, and two prongs came off it and pointed upwards. He wore the Millennium Ring around his neck, and bore two large golden shoulder pads.

On his left was a woman and two men. The woman wore a white headpiece with the head of the God Horus on the front. She wore a long dress and the Millennium Tauk rested around her neck. She also looked remarkably like Ishizu Ishtar.

The man to the left of her had on a tall blue hat. At the bottom of the hat there was golden lining, with a snake in the front, resting on the man's forehead. He wore a blue top and a beige kilt underneath. On the front of his torso was a golden ankh, and he held the Millennium Rod. His eyes were shadowed and unseen.

The last man had on a long tunic and an intricate belt. He also wore his hood up and carried the Millennium Key.

"Yes, Your Majesty. …As you know…these are the six high priests chosen by the Millennium Items! We are about to begin the royal court…" Siamun explained. "The Pharaoh must be very tired…" he said quietly to try and convince himself as well.

'_The six priests…chosen by the Millennium Items?' _the Pharaoh asked himself, surprised.

The guard kneeling on the floor spoke again. "Great Pharaoh! May we open the court?" he inquired. "V—very well…" the Pharaoh replied, unsure of what to say.

The soldier stood and called towards the entrance to the throne room, "BRING IN THE PRISONER!!" Two more guards entered, and between them they guided in a bald man who was wearing nothing but a loincloth. One of his teeth was missing, and his hands were bound behind his back. "This way!" one of the guards barked. "No…wait…" the prisoner pleaded. "This man was caught trying to enter the tomb of the Former Pharaoh!" the guard to the left of the prisoner explained.

The prisoner growled, then protested, "I'm not a thief! I didn't steal anything! The tomb was empty when I got there! There was no treasure, not even—" "BE QUIET!" the guard on the right commanded. The soldier who first entered then began to speak again. "The resting place of the Pharaohs is the territory of the Gods!! Learn now that those who set foot in the sacred ground will face the Gods' judgment!" The prisoner emitted another sound. "Ggk…."

"Great Pharaoh…" Siamun began. "There is no end to thieves like this, who would rob the royal tombs…. These sinners are judged by the seven holy items of the Pharaoh and the Six Priests…The Millennium Items!"

'_To judge the sinners? Is THAT what the Millennium Items are for…?!' _the Pharaoh asked himself.

"Now your crime will be judged by the seven Millennium Items!" Siamun proclaimed. "What…what are you going to do…?" the criminal asked, slightly worried.

"High Priest Shaada!" Siamun called. The man with the Millennium Key stepped forward. He then held the Item in front of him. "With the Millennium Key, I look into this man's heart!!" he announced. As if he were zooming in, he was able to see inside the man's heart. It looked like a pit, and at the bottom of the pit was a pitch-black sharp-toothed many-armed monster. "Just as expected! I see the shadow of an evil Ka in this man's heart!!" Shaada exclaimed.

The man with the Millennium Eye then stepped forward. "And now I, High Priest Akhenaden…will use the Millennium Eye to reveal the TRUE form of that Ka!" he declared. The criminal began to shout. "ARRRGHH…urg…h—hurts…" he murmured as a swirling mist seemed to emerge from his mouth into the air around him.

'_Something is coming out of that man's body!' _the Pharaoh observed.

"Anger, hatred…those negative emotions create monsters in men's souls…. Eventually those Ka will take over that person, making them commit crimes…breaking the divine order of Ma'at…increasing their power by creating more rage and sorrow," Siamun explained. The mist rising out of the prisoner's body formed into the monster Shaada had seen in his heart. "The six priests chosen by the power of one thousand years have the ability of exorcise these demons…and seal them away in stone slabs!" Siamun continued.

'_Stone slabs…?!' _the Pharaoh thought, eyes wide. He saw that not too far from where the judgment was taking place, two guards had erected a large stone slab.

"Priest Seto! Use the power of your Millennium Rod to seal the Ka within the stone!" Akhenaden called.

The man with the Millennium Rod stepped forward and looked up, light falling upon the upper part of his face. He was true to his name. His facial features matched Kaiba's exactly.

'_Hmph…' _he thought. "A Ka of this low level isn't even an amusement for the Pharaoh…" he muttered, smirking. Seto held the Millennium Rod in front of him. "Evil Ka! Dark spirit of chaos! Begone—and enter the holy stone!" he commanded. The Millennium Rod began to glow, and the monster was pulled into the stone slab as the image of it was etched on the rock.

'_Priest Seto…!!' _the Pharaoh thought, looking closer at him. _'That's…!!' _

Priest Seto smirked.

* * *

_-Hey guys! SO SO SORRY FOR THE LONG UPDATE. My friend bunnyninjasftw stole my Volume 1 and had it for months. So if you want to complain, do it to her. Nah, I'm kidding, don't. But again, sorry for the long wait. _

_-Anyways, I'll probably be calling "Yami Yuugi" "The Pharaoh" from now on because it fits the character better. I never really liked calling him "Yami" in the first place. _

_-For those of you who don't know what "Ka" are, it'll be explained in the next chapter._

_-So yeah, we're about halfway through the first volume! Hooray!_

_-One last thing. Sorry for the descriptions of the priests. I am REALLY bad at describing things, so I tried to make it as vivid as I could. I'm sorry!_

_-Okay, I lied. One more thing. Chapter 6 is really long. So, it might take me a while. But since I have my book back now, I'm going to try and work extra hard to make up for lost time._

_-Thank you to you who review! _

_**Velgamidragon**_

_**AVAgrl**_

_**NightmareTroubador**_

_-Thank you all!_


	6. Duel 6: The Evil Shadow

**Chapter 6: The Evil Shadow**

"The World of Memory?!" Yuugi repeated with wide eyes.

"Yes…" Bobasa confirmed as he nodded. "The God Cards that the Pharaoh won in Battle City have fulfilled the ancient prophecy. When the Pharaoh presented them to this stone slab, it opened the door in the Millennium Puzzle, to the place where is memories were sealed," Bobasa explained. "Those memories of three thousand years ago…when the Pharaoh lived…have been revived. And now he walks in the world of his memories…."

"Does that mean the Other Me has gone through a time warp to three thousand years ago?" Yuugi asked.

"It's not that. Even if the Pharaoh becomes part of the World of Memory, his memories of the present will remain," Bobasa explained. "Then, no matter where he goes, he'll still remember us?" Anzu inquired.

"Yes…but the World of Memory is built of events that actually happened three thousand years ago…and so the course of events is already determined…the Pharaoh must relive his cruel fate once more," Bobasa proclaimed.

"His 'cruel fate'? What do you mean…?" Anzu wondered. "I think I know…" Yuugi murmured, looking at the ground.

"He'll experience his death…for the second time…."

"Yes…. Only at that time will the reason the Pharaoh's soul was sealed in the Millennium Puzzle become clear," Bobasa clarified. Anzu gasped and her hand flew over her mouth. The Spirit of the Millennium Ring pondered Bobasa's words.

'_Aha…this is interesting…. So that means the Pharaoh's three thousand-year-old memories are replaying themselves in his soul…and the secrets of the Millennium Puzzle are hidden there too…. Is there any way I can see them?' _he wondered.

"Hey, Bobasa! Before you were talking like we could go to that world too!!" Jonouchi exclaimed, mirroring the Spirit's thoughts. "Yes…. There is away to make the journey!" Bobasa affirmed.

Giant smiles grew on the gang's faces. "We can go find Yuugi?!" Jonouchi asked, delighted. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's get going!!" Honda urged.

"The entrance to the World of Memory…is in Yuugi's soul…" Bobasa went on to say. _'Huh?! In my soul…?!' _Yuugi wondered, somewhat confused. "Open sesame!!" Bobasa exclaimed as he opened his shirt. He removed the Millennium Key from its indentation. _'We'll use the Millennium Key!' _he thought, holding it in front of him. "The Millennium Key grants the power to enter a person's soul," Bobasa explained. "When he came to test you, Master Shaadi tried to enter Yuugi's soul…but inside was a maze of many doors and many rooms…and he couldn't find the one true door."

'_The true door…!!' _Yuugi thought. "Now we must find it!" Bobasa announced. "Beyond the true door…lies the World of the Pharaoh's Memories!"

The Pharaoh couldn't help but stare at Priest Seto. _'It's him!' _he thought, shocked, as Seto smirked. "Well done, Priest Seto," Akhenaden complimented.

"Please. I'm sure it was dull for the Pharaoh," Seto murmured. He then turned his gaze towards the prisoner. "Shall we draw and quarter this prisoner for his amusement?" he mused.

"That is unnecessary," Akhenaden replied. "The evil Ka has been exorcised from that man's soul. Even though he is a sinner, part of the duty of a priest is to show mercy. Don't you agree, Priest Seto?" he inquired.

Seto raised the Millennium Rod slightly. "The resting place of the Great Pharaoh is the domain of the gods. There should be no pity for a grave robber who would defile such a holy spot. I suggest we flay his body, break his bones and execute him as a warning to other robbers…" he stated somewhat menacingly.

"Yeep…" the criminal yelped in fear. "Please don't kill me…."

"That man is sentenced to seven years' hard labor!! Take him away!!" Akhenaden commanded the guards. "Yes sir!" they exclaimed as they obeyed.

"Priest Mahaado! Supervision of the royal tombs is the duty of your guards, is it not?" Seto remarked with well-masked mockery in his voice. "The royal tombs are being defiled too often these days…what do you have to say about it?"

The man with the Millennium Ring turned his gaze to the ground. "You have my deepest apologies…" he said sincerely. "However, for the last few days the auguries I receive from the Millennium Ring have been extremely erratic…. The number of Ka nesting in people's souls has vastly increased. I can't detect every sinner and every evil intention…" he protested.

"It is the duty of the six priests to protect the Pharaoh! Both in this world…and in the tombs where they await the World Beyond!" Seto chastised.

Mahaado stepped forward and knelt before the Pharaoh. "Great Pharaoh! I request permission to enlist more troops to strengthen the guards at the Valley of Kings!" he exclaimed. "Er, yes…I leave it to you…!" the Pharaoh stammered, trying to sound normal. Seto then turned to a group of soldiers. "Take the new Ka to the Shrine of Wedju! Place it among the other stones!" he commanded. "Yes sir!" the soldiers said as they took the large slab away on some sort of a moving cart.

'_That man who sealed the monster into the stone slab…his voice, his face…he's identical to Kaiba…" _the Pharaoh observed. He brought his hand to his forehead and touched the Eye of Wdjat on his crown. _'There's so much I don't understand…the six priests who hold the Millennium Items…this Siamun Muran who looks exactly like Grandpa…he says he's my advisor…and everyone calls me "Pharaoh"…. Is this a dream…?!' _he wondered. _'Or…could it be…? Is this the world of three thousand years in the past…?'_

Siamun seemed to notice how the Pharaoh was acting, however, he interpreted it differently. _'The Pharaoh seems very upset about the invasion of the former Pharaoh's tomb…' _he thought. "Do not worry, Great Pharaoh!!" he proclaimed.

"Huh…?" the Pharaoh wondered, surprised by the sudden outburst. "I have taken personal responsibility…to design the tomb where you will have your eternal rest!" Siamun exclaimed proudly.

"MY TOMB…?!?!" the Pharaoh burst out before he could stop himself. The volume of Siamun's voice dropped a notch. "Actually…the designs are complete, and construction has already begun…ho ho…secretly, that is…secretly…" he trailed off. "The royal tomb builders of the village of Deir El-Medina are not only trustworthy, but highly skilled. After your death, Pharaoh, I guarantee you will rest in peace!!" he announced. "Your tomb contains several of my finest traps. It will be absolutely impossible for any thief to enter!! Even if someone breaches the other barrier, they will find only a place of Shadow Games that will send any thief to the dreadful Twelve Hours of Night. Ho ho…!" he chortled.

The Pharaoh's head rested in his hand, and his expression was one of boredom. "The truth is, the tomb of your father, Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen, was a prototype for yours…but no matter how skilled the thief, they could never get past the traps of a royal tomb!" Siamun declared.

Suddenly, the Millennium Tauk began to glow. The woman bearing it closed her eyes. "What is it, Isis?!" Akhenaden demanded. Isis opened her eyes. "My Millennium Tauk has picked up a…disturbing…future," she told everyone. "What?!" Akhenaden asked, surprised. "A disturbing future!!" Siamun repeated. "An evil shadow approaches this palace…someone with incredible powers of Heka!*" Isis declared. The six priests all looked towards the entrance to the throne room.

Meanwhile, there was a commotion outside the palace walls. One man particularly stood out. He wore a bright red robe with white lining, and he carried many golden artifacts that looked as though they belonged in a tomb, as well as a mummy tied to a rope that he was dragging along on the ground. Across his right eye, he had a long vertical scar, with two horizontal scars crossing it across his cheek. "H-heh heh heh…" he chuckled, smirking.

"How DARE you approach the royal palace?! Who do you think you are?" one of the guards demanded. The man finally spoke. "A king is robed in gold, isn't he…?" he asked rhetorically. "Then that must make ME a king, too! A KING OF THIEVES! H-HA HEH HEH HA HA!" he broke out laughing. "…Those are gold funerary relics! You're…a grave robber…!!" one of the guards realized, pointing his spear at the self-proclaimed King of Thieves. "Shut up! I have no use for you!" the man commanded.

"Tell the Pharaoh! The King of Thieves from Kul Elna…the Great Bakura…has come in person to see him!"

The needles on Mahaado's Millennium Ring began to stir. "What's wrong, Priest Mahaado?" Shaada asked.

"My Millennium Ring has detected a great shadow power…" Mahaado murmured, looking down at the Ring. A soldier burst into the throne room, yelling.

"Your Holiness! A grave robber calling himself Bakura is heading toward the Pharaoh's chamber!" he announced. "Here? That's insane!" Akhenaden said disbelievingly. "What are the guards doing?!!" Seto asked urgently.

'_Bakura…!' _the Pharaoh thought. Meanwhile, Bakura simply walked through the palace, all the guards in his wake were either dead or unconscious; it was impossible to tell. One of the guards in front of the throne room he forced onto his knees and snapped his neck. He strutted into the throne room.

"At last…the throne room…" he said. Everyone in the room stared, unsure of what to make of Bakura. "Lose something? Here! These are the treasures I just removed from Akhenamkhanen's tomb!!" Bakura declared as he threw the funerary relics to the ground, causing them to clatter loudly against the floor. He then gestured to the mummy he was dragging around. "I even brought this thing I found in the coffin! Can't you set better traps than that?!" he asked mockingly.

"Y—You defiled Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen's tomb?!" Siamun snarled angrily. "I've come for the Millennium Items…" Bakura stated, smirking. "Well? Aren't you scum going to pass judgment on me?! I am the Great Bakura, the King of Thieves! H-ha ha ha ha ha!"

* * *

* Heka = Egyptain for "magic"

_-WOW! Two chapters in two days! Ha, I'm on a roll! Nah, I'm kidding. I was mistaken about chapter 6 in that it's not as long as I thought it was. On the other hand, Chapter 7 IS long. Very long. And it has battle scenes. Which makes me a little scared. I've never really written a battle scene before, but I'll do my best. _

_-And I made sure, the whole Ba/Ka think IS explained in the next chapter, I'm sure of it._

_-Again, I'd like to thank my reviewers:_

_**Velgamidragon**_

_**NightmareTroubador**_

_**AVAgrl**_

_-I appreciate it so much. I love opening my inbox and seeing a review there. I just...love it. You guys are awesome._

_-Until the next chapter!_


	7. Duel 7: Bakura, King of Thieves

**Chapter 7: Bakura, King of Thieves**

"The Millennium Key!! With its power, we can enter Yuugi's soul!! And, faith willing, we will find the true door in the labyrinth within!" Bobasa exclaimed, holding the Millennium Key before the gang.

'_The true door!!' _Yuugi, Jonouchi, and Anzu repeated in their minds. "And beyond it…the World of the Pharaoh's Memories!" Bobasa continued.

"Go into Yuugi's soul?!!" Jonouchi asked a bit disbelievingly. "You can DO that?!" Honda added. The Spirit of the Millennium Ring listened intently.

Yuugi pondered Bobasa's claims. _'I remember the one other time I visited the Other Me's "room of the soul"…. It was an endless maze with thousands of doors…a maze where you couldn't tell the floor from the ceiling…like a soul that had lost its memories and didn't know where to go!' _he mused. _'Somewhere in there is the one door that leads to the Other Me's memories!' _

Jonouchi grinned. "Let's do it! Let's find that door!" he urged. "Aww right!" Honda cheered. "Ho ho ho!" Bobasa chuckled, his large body shaking.

Suddenly, his face became serious again. "But first…! Before we begin…I will choose who can enter Yuugi's soul!" he claimed as he reached into his shirt again. "The Millennium Scales!" The said Item gleamed in Bobasa's hand.

"I will touch this Scale to your heart! If your soul contains any evil or deception, the Scale will tilt! That person cannot enter!!" Bobasa explained.

Jonouchi and Honda both became indignant. "What, you don't TRUST us?!" Jonouchi accused. "Jonouchi's a pervert! Of COURSE it's gonna tilt!" Honda argued.

"It is not a matter of whether I trust you!" Bobasa answered. "Those with evil hearts may be trapped in his soul. It is for your own good that I do this now."

Bobasa then held the Scale to Anzu. The Scale did not stir. "Anzu is okay!!" Bobasa announced. He then moved towards where Jonouchi and Honda were waiting angrily. "Jonouchi is okay…Honda is okay…" Bobasa muttered as he moved along. "Darn right we are!!" Jonouchi grumbled.

However, as Bobasa moved to the next person, the Scale wobbled, and tilted.

Ryou looked at the scale in disbelief. "Wha…? Why me…?!" he wondered aloud. "Oh no! Bakura!!" Yuugi exclaimed. "Bakura, I'm sorry…but you cannot enter!" Bobasa declared. Ryou scratched the back of his head uncomfortably. "But _I_ want to find Yuugi, too!!" he implored. "Bakura's our friend!!" Jonouchi defended. But Bobasa would not hear of it. "No good!! You must leave here immediately!!" he ordered. Bobasa stared between Ryou and the tilted Millennium Scale. _'The Millennium Scale senses an evil shadow in this young man's soul…. Could it be…that THIS is the young man who holds the Millennium Ring…!?" _he wondered.

Ryou turned towards the exit sadly, waving to his friends. "Well, I guess that's it then…I'll go home…. But you guys HAVE to find Yuugi and bring him back!" he asserted. "Bakura…!!" Jonouchi began, but Ryou turned and dashed out the door, calling over his shoulder, "Bye, guys! See you later!"

And as he exited, he had but one thought. _'I hate him!' _Yuugi watched Ryou leave sympathetically. _'Poor Bakura…' _he thought. _'I wonder if it's because he's wearing the Millennium Ring…' _As Ryou ran through the museum, sniffing and suppressing sobs, the Spirit of the Millennium Ring smirked slightly. _'H-heh heh…' _he mentally chuckled. _'This works just fine…. I don't need you to go along….' _His smirk widened. _'My shadow is already waiting in Yuugi's soul!!' _

"Now, everyone join hands and form a circle!" Bobasa commanded. Honda emitted an "Urk…" of displeasure. Jonouchi extended his hands hesitantly. "H—Hold hands…?" he repeated.

Finally, Bobasa grabbed Jonouchi's wrist. "Ugh…" he grunted. Jonouchi and Honda's hands were still maneuvering around each other, reluctant to actually touch. As Anzu held Yuugi's left hand, she glanced at him, blushing slightly.

Jonouchi and Honda finally resorted to simply touching index fingers. They all closed their eyes. _'Other Me, I promise…' _Yuugi thought. _'We'll find you no matter what!!' _Bobasa began to chant. "Let it open! Let the gate open! Let the way be made clear!" _'Yuugi!' _Anzu, Jonouchi, and Honda all thought simultaneously. Bobasa raised the Millennium Key high above his head. "Millennium Key!! Lead us into the soul of the one chosen by the Millennium Puzzle!!" he beseeched. The Millennium Puzzle glowed brightly, and suddenly, they were falling into seemingly endless darkness.

Bakura laughed maniacally. "H-ha ha ha ha ha! You worthless slime are going to pass judgment on ME?" he asked the six priests in mock surprise. _'Bakura, the King of Thieves…?!' _the Pharaoh thought, staring.

"H-heh heh…" the Thief chuckled darkly. Priest Shaada held the Millennium Key threateningly in front of him. "To step unbidden before the Throne of the Pharaoh is a serious crime! You will not be forgiven!!" he declared angrily. Bakura gestured to the golden artifacts on the ground. "These gold trinkets are the burial items I just took from Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen's tomb!" he announced, seemingly ignoring Shaada. "But there's something I want much more than these!" He then pointed at the six guardians. "Your Millennium Items! I'll ask you once nicely…will you give all seven of them to me? Well?" he asked, his grin still plastered on his face.

"Mheh heh…" Seto snickered. "For a miserable thief, to stand before the six priests takes courage…. We'll make sure the Canopic Jar for your guts is a somewhat larger one." His threat was veiled, but Bakura was unfazed.

"Listen well, Thief Bakura…" Akhenaden began. "The law and order of this world is maintained by these seven Millennium Items. The only ones who can hold them are the priests who have trained their souls…and the Divine Pharaoh who rules this land! If a person like you, with a heart of evil, were to touch a Millennium Item, your very soul would burn away. The Gods themselves would punish you with death!" he warned. "You excite me…" Bakura stated with his signature maniacal grin. "Now I want them even more!! H-heh heh heh heh…." "Don't worry…I'll punish you with death _myself_ first…" Seto vowed, smirking.

"Interesting!" Bakura exclaimed. "I'll take on all of you priests at once!" The Pharaoh said nothing and simply watched this exchange of words. "There's nothing to worry about, Pharaoh!" Siamun declared confidently. He glanced at the Pharaoh. "The thief should be the one to worry…. No _sane_ person could stand alone against the Heka of the six priests!" "Siamun…is there a monster in his soul as well?" the Pharaoh asked curiously. "There very well may be…" Siamun said thoughtfully. "Although for a mere thief, it's probably a low-level, weak monster…."

He then launched into an explanation of the workings of the soul.

"As you know, all people have two souls: the _Ba _and the _Ka_. The Ba is undying…the energy of their soul. It nourishes the Ka, the spirit that is the reflection of their true nature, and which may leave the body…. A good soul gives rise to a Spirit or God Ka…. An evil soul turns into a Monster or Demon Ka. Each of those is determined by the strength of the Ba!"

The Pharaoh then noticed that two guards had erected a large stone tablet to the side of the room. _'A stone slab!' _he noted mentally. Siamun turned his gaze back to Bakura. "His Ka will soon show its evil form…and be sealed into the stone by the Heka of the six priests."

The very air in the room seemed to rumble with tension as everyone stared at the thief. The Millennium Scales wobbled back and forth. _'The Scale's tilting too wildly! It can't weigh that man's evil!' _the priest who wielded them, Kalim, thought with shock. Mahaado looked down at the Millennium Ring as its needles went crazy. Isis stared off into space as she thought, _'The evil shadow in that person will bring disaster to this world….' _Akhenaden's eye widened. _'I see a bottomless pit of shadow within his soul…. A powerful hatred is hidden there!!' _he observed.

_'Law and order?! Don't make me laugh!' _the self-proclaimed king of thieves thought. _'The Millennium Items were created by destruction. There's shadow power hiding inside them!!' _His eyes widened. _'THAT'S what I want! To get revenge for the dark past you tried to hide…the birth of the Millennium Items!!' _

"Priest Shaada!" Akhenaden exclaimed. "The shadows of that man's soul are deep. Be careful not to be drawn in by his evil!" he warned. "Yes!" Shaada affirmed, then held the Millennium Key out in front of him, towards Bakura. "Power of the Millennium Key! Lead me into this sinner's soul!!" he declared.

However, as soon as he was able to see into Bakura's dark soul, a snake so large that one of its fangs was Shaada's height opened its mouth, hissed, and snapped at Shaada. _'What?!' _Shaada thought incredulously as he laid eyes upon the monstrosity. He then gasped and cringed back as Akhenaden asked, "What's wrong, Shaada?!"

Shaada stood panting for a moment, still shaken, before he stuttered, "That man's Ka…is too great…." He then regained composure and gestured to the stone slab. "That stealing stone is too small for it!" he proclaimed. "That can't be!" Akhenaden responded, shocked.

Their attention was turned back to Bakura as he snickered. "H-heh heh heh…." "His Ka is about to appear!!" Akhenaden warned.

And finally, it did.

A huge and glorious beast made its appearance, with a humanoid torso and wings sprouting from its back. Its helmet had two wing-like extremities protruding from the sides. Below the beast's torso was the body of a snake, with the monster's tail ending in a snake's head. It was so large it nearly filled the entire throne room.

The priests stared at it in awe. "WHAT?!! I don't believe it!! How can such a demon dwell within a mere thief's soul?" Akhenaden wondered in amazement. "Oh, this isn't a demon…" Bakura corrected mockingly. "This is my Ka, Diabound the Beast Spirit of Death!!" _'Diabound!!' _the Pharaoh thought as he stared at the beast.

'_Impossible…A God-type Ka, a holy spirit, can't exist within the evil heart of a thief!' _Siamun thought. Bakura began speaking again. "H-heh heh heh…. What is 'evil'? If I am loyal to what you say is 'right', is that all it takes to make me 'good'?" he asked rhetorically.

'_Don't underestimate the power of the Millennium Items, Thief!' _Seto thought. He then pointed his Millennium Rod at Diabound. "Evil Ka! By the power of the Millennium Rod, I cast you into the holy stone!" he declared as a beam of light engulfed Diabound, and it seemed as though the creature began to disintegrate. "Tch…" Bakura emitted in displeasure. Seto then outstretched his empty hand towards the stone slab, and the beam shot towards it. When the light died down, Diabound had disappeared, but its image had appeared on the sealing stone.

"Now do you see?!" Seto asked smugly. Bakura, however, was unfazed. "We'll see about that…" he murmured, smirking. Seto then heard a cracking noise, and he whipped around to look at the stone slab. _'Wha…?!' _The cracks in the stone grew, and finally the stone slab exploded into tiny fragments, and Diabound burst from the rubble, as giant as ever.

"Your sealing stones aren't up to the task of keeping my Ka sealed up!" Bakura boasted. Seto stepped forward once more.

"In that case…let me show you the _true_ power of the priests…."

**Welp, it's definitely been a while, so I have a few things to cover.**

**-The reason it took so long for me to update is because I kind of couldn't find my volume 1...^^" *scratches back of head sheepishly* So I had to find some scans online and use those instead...so yeah.**

**-I'm really hoping I did okay with the seemingly endless descriptions...that's one thing I definitely need to work on...**

**-So there you finally have the explanation of the Ba and the Ka... I hope that clears some things up.**

**-As always, a special thank-you to the reviewers, AVAgrl, NightmareTroubador, and Velgamidragon. I always appreciate the feedback!~**


	8. Duel 8: Diabound VS Galestgoras

**Chapter 8: Diabound VS Galestgoras**

"Urrgh…." Jonouchi woke up, clutching his head. "Mm…" Yuugi groaned, also sitting up.

"Hey Yuugi…" Jonouchi murmured. "Look at this! Where the heck ARE we?" he wondered, looking around at the endless stone labyrinth. The ceiling couldn't be told from the floor, and every wall looked the same. Anzu and Honda also stirred and woke up.

Yuugi, however, knew exactly where they were. "This is my Other Me's…'Maze of the Soul'…" he explained, staring in awe at the thousands of doors lining every wall and turn. "All THIS is Yuugi's soul?" Jonouchi asked somewhat disbelievingly as Honda yawned tiredly.

Bobasa seemed to appear from nowhere and said, "That is so…. We have entered the Room of the Pharaoh's Soul by the power of the Millennium Key…." "Bobasa…" Yuugi began, but was interrupted when Honda seemed to finally wake up, and looked around frantically, exclaiming, "WHAT TH-? Wh—where are we!"

Jonouchi ignored him and asked Bobasa, "Then the true door is somewhere in HERE?" "Yes," Bobasa affirmed. "We must find the true door. It is the only way to leave this dimension!" he continued. "WHAT!" Jonouchi blurted out, now beginning to be scared.

The gang then looked up at the impossible labyrinth that was the Other Yuugi's mind.

Jonouchi suddenly cracked a smile. "So we gotta find it! Let's find the true door! It's on!" he shouted with confidence to the maze of stone and doors.

'_Wait for us, my Other Self!' _Yuugi thought determinedly. _'We'll find the door and follow you to the World of Memories!'_

_

* * *

_

Bakura's monstrous Ka, Diabound, burst out of the stone tablet, causing it to shatter, the pieces clattering against the floor of the palace. "It can't be!" Priest Seto exclaimed in disbelief. "H-ha ha…" the Thief King chuckled. "I told you, it's not a Demon…it's a GOD!" he repeated.

While the Pharaoh stared at the beast in shock, Siamun breathed, "Unbelievable! How can a lowly _thief_ have a Holy Spirit Ka…a 'good' Ka…and it's so _strong_!"

'_Bakura…' _the Pharaoh thought in recognition. _'A thief after the Millennium Items…! There's no mistake…it's him!' _

Priest Seto then stepped forward. "How dare you enter the palace, you heretical imbecile!" he demanded angrily. "I'll show you the true power of the priests with the Millennium Items!"

"Good! That sounds fun!" Bakura accepted the challenge greedily. "Come on, all of you! Fight me!" he boasted. "Tch…" Seto emitted in displeasure.

"Priest Seto!" Akhenaden began. "The enemy is powerful! We should join forces to…" "_Stay back!_" Seto interrupted, thrusting his arm out. "I'm more than strong enough for someone like him!" he claimed. He then began chanting a spell in an unknown language(1), and a stone slab began to rise from the ground behind him. It made a booming noise as it came to its full height, about twice that of Seto.

"Priest Seto's servant monster will counterattack the Thief's Ka! A Demon to fight a Spirit…very wise!" Siamun praised. The Pharaoh glanced to his side. _'Priest Seto's servant monster…?' _he wondered.

"West of this palace, at the end of the ceremonial boulevard, is the 'Shrine of Wedju'!" Siamun explained. "The Stone Tablets of the Gods rest in that holy place. And the monsters exorcised from sinners are sealed there forever as well…." A picture ran through Siamun's head of the rows upon rows of stone tablets in that shrine. "Those who hold the Millennium Items can command three monsters from the many thousands in the Shrine of Wedju," he continued. The Pharaoh looked back at Priest Seto with more understanding.

Seto continued chanting. "Priest Seto is chanting the spell to call a monster into that slab!" Siamun finished.

Back at the Shrine of Wedju, one of the many tablets began to glow. The picture of the dragon etched upon it grew brighter until a concentrated beam of light burst forth from the tablet and flew towards the palace. The various guards beneath it noticed. "A Ka! It flew from the Shrine of Wedju to the palace! Something important must be going on!" one of them exclaimed.

The beam of light then struck the tablet erect behind Seto, the same dragon appearing on it. "So your great big Ka appears at last…!" Bakura sneered, his signature smirk plastered on his face. "Galestgoras, I summon thee!" Seto shouted, and the very air around him seemed to rumble.

From the tablet emerged an enormous dragon. It had a very long neck with tall spines on the back. It stood on two legs and roared threateningly at Diabound.

'_This is amazing!' _the Pharaoh thought in awe as he watched with wide eyes. _'This looks like a game of Duel Monsters! If this is Ancient Egypt…then there were Duelists in this age as well!' _he concluded. "GO, PRIEST SETO!" Siamun cheered.

"DIAHA(2)!" both Seto and Bakura yelled simultaneously.

"You pulled that monster Galestgoras out of a sinner…" Bakura began. "But none of the monsters in your temple is a match for Diabound, my Spirit Beast! I am the King of Thieves! I am much more than any other 'sinner'…more than you can imagine!" he boasted.

Priest Seto matched Bakura's expression with a smirk of his own. "I have no need to summon my personal guardian spirit…to defeat the Ka of someone like you!" he claimed. "What you mean is, you're afraid!" Bakura countered. "If your own spirit were hurt, your life would be in danger!" "Mheh heh... Boast while you can, scum!" Seto shouted, thrusting his arm out towards the thief.

Galestgoras then roared and charged at Diabound, leaping into the air. _'Snap him in two!' _Seto mentally commanded his Ka. Galestgoras chomped down hard on Diabound's left arm. "Hmph…" Bakura emitted, unworried. The snake head on Diabound's tail charged at Galestgoras from behind. While it did that, Diabound jerked its arm free from the grasp of the dragon and punched it across the snout. Just then, something happened that made Bakura's eyes widen in surprise. _'What…!' _"Mheh heh…" Seto sneered.

Galestgoras had grabbed Diabound's tail and pinned it to the floor. "Ahh! He's grappled Diabound!" Bakura exclaimed. "I'll end this in one move!" Seto declared. Galestoras threw Diabound to the ground and used the leverage to propel itself into the air, right above Diabound. _'Stomp him flat!'_ Seto commanded. As Galestgoras descended upon Diabound, Bakura muttered, "Heh…." When Galestgoras landed, Seto thought, _'It's over….' _Bakura, knowing what Seto was thinking, asked, "Are you sure of that…?" Seto's eyes widened. _'What?' _

There was no beast under the huge claws of Seto's dragon.

"Wait! Diabound is gone!" Seto bellowed. "How can this be? Did it return to its host?" he asked, more to himself than to anyone else.

"No!" Bakura answered. "I activated Diabound's special ability…" he informed Seto. _'Special ability!' _Seto repeated in his mind. "When a person has a Ka in his soul, it develops powers that he wishes he had…" Bakura started. "It reflects his most secret desires! As for me…I am a thief! What power would help me to steal treasure…?" he asked rhetorically. He then answered his own question.

"_The power to move through solid stone_!"

"His Ka can move through WALLS?" Seto roared incredulously. "And one more thing…" Bakura continued, ignoring Seto. "When a monster is summoned from a stone slab…it will vanish if that slab is destroyed, right?" he asked, though he knew the answer.

"Oh no! Seto! Protect the stone tablet!" one of the priests yelled urgently. However, as Seto whipped around, Bakura murmured with a smirk, "Too late…."

As Seto watched, an image of Diabound began to appear on Galestgoras's stone tablet. "What? The Spirit Beast is appearing on the stone slab!" Seto stated. _'Impossible! It can hide in the ground…or even in other monsters' slabs?' _he wondered.

Once Diabound's image was finished appearing on the stone tablet, the slab began to crack, and once again, Diabound burst forth from the stone tablet, the pieces flying everywhere and clattering against the walls and floor. "H-HA HA HA HA HA!" Bakura cackled. "GRAAH!" Galestgoras roared as it disappeared in wisps of smoke. "Tch…" Seto muttered.

"This is boring…I want to fight the Pharaoh!" Bakura decided.

* * *

**1) Well, in the manga, it looks like Seto's chanting in Egyptian, but I figured since they're IN Egypt, they would already be speaking in Egyptian, so I thought that the "other language" had to be something different.**

**2) Diaha is Ancient Egyptian for "Duel Start"**

**Yeah, yeah, I know...it's been a while...but I'm back, and school's out. So these should be getting updated faster. I'm not good with battles. I'm just not. But I was looking through volume two, and I cannot wait until the practice duel between the Pharaoh and Seto. It's just so funny. xD**

**Another thing. I'm having a hard time with this. Every time I need to type "the Pharaoh", I keep starting to type his real name by accident! It's kind of starting to frustrate me. I type like, the first two letters, and then I realize he hasn't figured it out yet, so I sigh in exasperation and type "Pharaoh". [I'm fairly sure most people who are reading this already know his name, but for the sake of those who don't, I won't mention it. =)]**

**As always, a thank-you to my reviewers, AVAgrl, Velgamidragon, and NightmareTroubador.**

**And a special thank-you goes to NightmareTroubador, for providing me with scans so I could continue this. I really appreciate it! Thanks a ton!  
**

**Until next time!  
**


	9. Duel 9: The Father's Shadow

**Chapter 9: The Father's Shadow**

"Priest Seto's monster Galestgoras has been killed!" Shaada exclaimed, watching the dragon fade from existence.

"H-ha ha ha! I told you, fools! Your small fry can't defeat my God Diabound!" the King of Thieves repeated.

"Tch…" Seto muttered unhappily. "Curse you…vile thief…."

'_Seto…' _the Pharaoh thought.

"Dull, dull, dull!" Bakura chided mockingly. "How about it, Pharaoh? Will you challenge me?" he asked. "If I lose, you can have my head. But if YOU lose, I'll take your life, your gold finery…and your Millennium Items!" he declared.

"Have you no respect?" Akhenaden demanded, pointing at Bakura. "How DARE you say such things to the Pharaoh, the Divine King? There will be no mercy for you!"

"Bakura!" the Pharaoh spoke at last. "Why do you want the Millennium Items?"

"Hmph…" Bakura murmured with his usual smirk. He then pulled on the rope he was holding, causing the head of the mummy he had dragged in to rise. "Why don't you ask HIM?" he asked.

"It's him! The former king!" Seto exclaimed in recognition. "H-heh heh…" Bakura chuckled darkly.

"You barbarian! How DARE you step on the body of Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen? I'll flay that foot to the bone!" Seto threatened angrily.

The Pharaoh's eyes widened. "The former…?" he murmured. "Siamun…is that mummy…my…." His voice trailed off.

"Yes…" Siamun affirmed. "That is your father…."

The Pharaoh's eyes widened. _'My…father!' _

"H-heh heh heh…after all…Akhenamkhanen MADE them!" Bakura continued. "He was the one who brought the Millennium Items into this world!"

The Pharaoh nearly lurched forward in surprise. _'The creator of the Millennium Items…was my father?'_

"Bakura…" Akhenaden began. "The Great Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen ruled for forty years…. He put an end to the wars between countries, and brought peace to this land!" he explained.

"Huh…peace for YOU…" the thief muttered.

"Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen wished for a millennium of peace for this war-torn country…" Akhenaden continued. "It is for that purpose that he made the Millennium Items!"

"I know this story!" Bakura interrupted, but Akhenaden ignored him and kept going.

"To stamp out all evil…to purge all sinners…he left us these seven holy Items imbued with the power of justice and righteousness!" he finished.

"H-ha ha ha! Justice? Don't make me laugh!" Bakura retorted. "Don't you know the truth?" he then demanded. "The Millennium Items are forbidden artifacts of black magic! The evil power of the darkness dwells within them! The one who owns all seven of them can forge a contract with the dark spirits of the Afterworld!" he stated.

"That's absurd!" Priest Mahaado exclaimed in disbelief. "'Dark spirits of the Afterworld'…?" Priestess Isis repeated to herself.

For what seemed like the first time that day, Bakura's smirk vanished.

"Have you ever heard the name…of the village of Kul Elna?" he asked, hate underlying his voice.

Akhenaden's eye widened. _'Kul Elna…?' _he thought in shock.

"That village is now a ruin, but a secret shrine is hidden there…and in that shrine is the Tablet of the Afterworld…" Bakura continued. "The one who places all seven Millennium Items in that stone tablet…will be given the power of the Shadows by the Evil God Zorc Necrophades!" he finished.

The Pharaoh growled mentally in anger. But Bakura wasn't finished. "H-heh heh heh…. Did you ever think maybe THAT'S why your Pharaoh made the Items?" he asked, sneering once more. "Maybe Akhenamkhanen was after that evil power…just like me! Not just Egypt…he wanted to rule the entire world with the power of Darkness!" he finished.

The Pharaoh growled once more and finally stood, pointing at Bakura.

"_**BAKURA**__!_" he bellowed in fury. "_**GET YOUR FOOT OFF OF THAT BODY**__!_"

Siamun watched this outburst with surprise.

"So…I finally got your butt off the throne…'Great Pharaoh'…" Bakura smirked.

"That does it!" Shaada yelled. "To insult the Pharaoh means death! We priests will carry out your execution!" Bakura turned his attention back to the priests.

"You priests are in the way!" he chided. "I'll get rid of all of you at the same time!"

'_Slabs of Wedju!' _the priests thought as four stone tablets rose behind them. The four priests using the tablets exclaimed, "Monster Ka sealed in the stone slab…" while the other two said, "Spirit Ka within my body!" But all together, they shouted, "I SUMMON THEE!"

Four Ka flew from the Shrine of Wedju to the stone tablets in the palace. Siamun noticed that the Pharaoh was still standing, his golden bangs casting a shadow over his eyes.

"Great Pharaoh…" he began. "I, Siamun, had the honor of serving your father, Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen, as his vizier for many years. I can say with certainty…your father was a good and strong Pharaoh who dedicated his life to bringing peace to his country and his people," he told the Pharaoh, remembering when Akhenamkhanen would stand on the balcony of the palace with his young prince by his side.

The Pharaoh looked towards the ground somewhat sadly. _'Yes…' _he thought. _'I remember now…just an image….' _A fragment of his memory, a picture of his father, played behind his eyes. '_My father's…face….' _

The Pharaoh then began to cross the throne room.

"Pharaoh…!" Siamun exclaimed in surprise. The Pharaoh didn't respond, but looked up with determination and kept walking. "It's too dangerous!" Siamun warned. "The Ka of the priests and the thief are about to clash! Return to the throne!" he urged.

The Ka from the Shrine of Wedju finally came into contact with the stone tablets in the palace. In no time, Diabound faced down a serpentine dragon, a black panther, a rather short mage in purple attire, a winged lady with a light blue dress, and a humanoid creature with a helmet remarkably like Diabound's. Diabound punched the head off of the dragon while its snake head bit the panther in two.

"Urgh…" Shaada grunted as he clutched his chest in pain. "Tch…. What power…!" Mahaado breathed. "Don't give up! Keep your Ba strong!" Akhenaden encouraged.

"H-HA HA HA!" Bakura laughed boastfully. "You're no match for my Diabound!"

"_**Move.**_"

Bakura looked slightly surprised as the Pharaoh thrust out his right arm and shoved Bakura to the side. The Pharaoh bent down with a sad expression and picked up the mummy.

'_My father…' _he thought.

"H-heh heh heh…. An emotional reunion, eh Pharaoh…? Some pieces might have fallen off on the way here…" Bakura mocked.

The Pharaoh didn't speak for a moment, then glanced back at Bakura.

"Stay right there…" he said in a low and dangerous voice.

"_I'm going to destroy you._"

* * *

**I'm on a roll! xD Kidding. But we are officially done with Volume One! Yay! =D **

**Update: I probably won't be able to update for a week or two. I'm going to be in New Mexico, so I won't have access to my stuff.**

**...Did you know "Akhenamkhanen" is REALLY annoying to type out?**

**And I'm still having the same problem with typing out the Pharaoh's name! I'm glad I proofread this, because if I hadn't, it would have been spoiled. *scratches back of head sheepishly* I accidentally typed it out three times...**

**As always, a thank you to my reviewers, AVAgrl, and Velgamidragon.**

**No, NightmareTroubador, I didn't forget about you. You get a special thanks, once again, for the scans. I really appreciate it! **

**Until next time! When we start Volume two!  
**


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